The world is teetering on the precipice of a war. It could come sooner than anyone thought.
Now a major U.S. ally came under attack and we may be next.
An Attack Will Happen
Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has brazenly ordered a direct strike on Israel in retaliation for the justified k*lling of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh inside Iran on Tuesday night.
The New York Times reported that he issued the order at an emergency meeting of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council immediately after the country announced Haniyeh’s demise.
“We see avenging his blood our duty,” Khamenei declared, ominously promising a “severe punishment” for Haniyeh’s death.
Iran, true to form, has pointed fingers at Israel for the k*lling of Haniyeh, a man who openly celebrated his organization’s brutal terrorist attack against Israel on October 7 and who had been a vocal advocate for more bloodshed.
In a statement, the Iranian Mission to the United Nations threatened: “The response to an assassination will indeed be special operations—harder and intended to instill deep regret in the perpetrator.”
This dangerous directive from Khamenei comes on the heels of Iran’s audacious attack on Israel in April, where they fired hundreds of drones and missiles directly at Israeli territory.
Senior U.S. officials noted at the time that these Iranian attacks were deliberately aimed at causing mass casualties in civilian areas and inflicting severe damage on infrastructure.
Fortunately, the U.S., Israel, and regional allies successfully intercepted nearly all the drones and missiles, with the few that did reach Israel causing only minor damage.
Who, What, When?
Iranian officials have suggested to the Times that they are mulling a coordinated assault involving their various terrorist proxy groups scattered across the region, including Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, and Yemen.
It’s been well-known since late last year that Israel pledged to track down and eliminate all those responsible for Hamas’ heinous October 7 attack, including the terrorist group’s leaders hiding in foreign lands.
Haniyeh’s death follows the k*lling of Hezbollah’s Fuad Shukr in Lebanon earlier that day by Israel, in retaliation for Hezbollah’s recent attack that tragically claimed the lives of 12 children in northern Israel.
The IDF identified Shukr as Hezbollah’s “most senior military commander and the head of its Strategic Unit,” as well as the “right-hand man” of Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah, and his “adviser for planning and directing wartime operations.”
The U.S. is resolute in its commitment to defend Israel against incoming attacks, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has affirmed, as Israeli strikes eliminate two senior Iran-backed commanders and concerns about a broader conflict in the Middle East escalate.
“If Israel is attacked, we certainly will help defend Israel,” U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin stated to the media aboard the USNS Millinocket during his visit to the Philippines.
“You saw us do that in April; you can expect to see us do that again,” he emphasized.
In April, the U.S., alongside key Israeli allies such as the U.K. and France, played a crucial role in intercepting an unprecedented barrage of Iranian drones and missiles launched from Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Yemen.
“We helped Israel take down nearly all of the incoming drones and missiles,” U.S. President Joe Biden remarked at the time.
Stay tuned to the DC Daily Journal.
